A conventional fuel assembly in a boiling water nuclear reactor vessel includes a lower tie plate, an upper tie plate and a matrix of the sealed fuel rods supported between the upper and lower tie plates. The fuel rods contain nuclear fuel pellets in sealed containment for supporting a required critical reaction for the generation of steam. One or more coolant rods is included in the matrix of the fuel rods and is also supported between the upper and lower tie plates. A channel surrounds the tie plates, fuel rods and coolant rod. This channel is commonly square in cross-section and made of metal (preferably an alloy called Zircaloy). Water passes from the bottom of the fuel assembly to the top of the fuel assembly. Water enters through the lower tie plate within the channel and passes between the upstanding fuel rods. Water and generated steam exit from within the channel between the fuel rods and out through the upper tie plate. The channel confines the required moderator coolant flow to a flow path that is restricted between the tie plates.
The lower tie plate and the upper tie plate serve to support the sealed fuel rods in the vertical and upstanding matrix. Typically, the upper tie plate forms an overlying matrix of fuel rod support points. Into about eight of these support points are conventionally placed correspondingly male threaded tie rods and fittings. The tie rods, which contain fuel similar to the fuel rods, are threaded at their lower ends for corresponding attachment to the lower tie plate. The lower tie plate similarly forms an underlying matrix of fuel rod support points. These underlying support points correspond for the most part to the overlying support points of the upper tie plate. Conventionally, about eight of these support points are threaded with female apertures, which correspond to the overlying apertures in the upper tie plates. Into these threaded support points in the lower tie plates are placed the lower threaded ends of the fuel tie rods. Thus, conventionally, the two tie plates are tied together with the fuel tie rods.
The tie plates also define a matrix of apertures for permitting fluid flow into and out of the fuel assembly. Specifically, the lower tie plate defines a first matrix of apertures for permitting the in flow of water coolant. This coolant functions in the capacity of moderating or slowing down reaction produced fast neutrons to produce reaction continuing slow or thermal neutrons. At the same time, as the coolant passes upwardly through the fuel assembly within the channel, a portion of the coolant is turned to steam. This steam and the coolant that is not turned into steam and remains in the liquid phase must pass out through the upper tie plate. Consequently, the upper tie plate forms its own matrix of apertures in between its matrix of fuel rod support points. The upper tie plate matrix of apertures permits the out flow of the two phase steam/water mixture from the fuel assembly.
The fuel bundle must be periodically replaced and/or inspected during so-called "outages" of a reactor. These outages occur when the central steam generating core of a nuclear reactor has its overlying component removed to provide access through shielding water to the core. During such "outages," sections of the reactor vessel core are removed, inspected and/or replaced. The core, submerged in a radiation quenching bath of water, has the fuel bundles to be replaced for inspection removed by remotely grasping the fuel assembly at a handle. The handle must define, at the top of the fuel assembly, a support point for the entire weight of the fuel assembly in a depending relationship when the assembly is removed from the vessel. Once the fuel assembly is supported at the handle, the entire weight of the fuel assembly is carried through the handle. This weight includes the weight of the fuel and coolant rods, the weight of the upper tie plate, the weight of the lower tie plate and the weight of the surrounding channel (upwards of 600 pounds).
Once the fuel assembly is removed from the vessel, the tie plates, fuel rods and coolant rods can be separated from the channel. After separation from the channel, the fuel rods can easily be inspected and/or replaced. Conventionally, however, the threaded end plugs of the fuel tie rods tend to seize in their threaded connections, thus making replacement of the fuel tie rods difficult and time consuming. Moreover, as fuel assembly design lifetimes are extended, corrosion effects weaken the fuel tie rods. This weakening occurs due to corrosion thinning of the material and by a reduction in ductility due to the formation of hydrogen and its absorption.
Thus, there is a need to provide a fuel assembly structure that does not include fuel tie rods threadedly connected between the upper and lower tie plates. Moreover, there is a need to utilize a structural load path for the fuel assembly that is less affected by corrosion effects. In general, since corrosion is a surface phenomena, a structure with a high volume to surface area provides more margin in this regard. Without adding additional structure to the general design of boiling water reactor fuel assemblies, the component with the highest volume to surface area is the channel.